About Trading Water

The water entitlements issued in irrigation districts managed by Tasmanian Irrigation are tradable within the district in which they are issued. Because water entitlements are separate from land, a person does not need to own land within a district to receive a transfer of water entitlements.
Trades are made by transferring volume (ML) between irrigation rights and flow rate (ML/day) between delivery rights. To take effect, a transfer must be approved by Tasmanian Irrigation and recorded in the water entitlements register for the relevant irrigation district.

Trade types
There are two categories of trades – entitlement trades and allocation trades – and three types of transfers – permanent transfers, limited term transfers and short term transfers. Entitlement trades include permanent and limited term transfers, while allocation trades refer to short term transfers.
Entitlement trades are transfers of the volume and flow rate entitlements held under irrigation rights and delivery rights. A permanent transfer (sale) will result in an absolute change in the ownership of entitlements, while a limited term transfer (lease) will result in a change in ownership for a defined period of time.
Allocation trades refer to transfers of the volume and flow rate allocations that have been made to irrigation rights and delivery rights for a particular irrigation season of an irrigation district. Because allocations are made on the first day of a season, short term transfers take effect entirely within one season.

Tradability
The tradability of water within an irrigation district is regulated through the zone nomination of delivery rights. A transfer of flow rate will only be approved if:
• in the case of permanent transfers, the zone nomination of the transferor’s delivery right is the same as the zone nomination of the transferee’s delivery right;
• in the case of limited term or short term transfers, the zone nomination of the transferor’s delivery right is the same as or compatible with the zone nomination of the transferee’s delivery right; or
• Tasmanian Irrigation approves the transfer on the basis that it does not exceed the capacity limitations of the scheme taking account of all other delivery rights issued.

Conditions
Important additional conditions to Tasmanian Irrigation’s approval of transfers include:
• that all money owing to Tasmanian Irrigation by the transferee and transferor is paid;
• that the sale price of the transfer is disclosed;
• in the case of transfers exceeding 12 months, that the transfer is consented to by the holders of any registered security interests;
• in the case of a permanent transfer, Tasmanian Irrigation is satisfied as to the credit worthiness of the transferee; and
• in the case of limited and short term transfers, the transferor remains liable for all money not paid by the transferee in relation to the transferred entitlement or allocation.